The upper part of Pennard Primary School’s sculpture is complete, cut into sections and drying. It has been a joy to build. The pupils panels and tiles for the lower half are drying beautifully. I’m putting together the Book now and it’s lovely to review the wonderful time we had with this fabulous group.
The Installation.
I was really lucky to be working with the wonderful, resourceful, ingenious Gareth Ellis from Green Valleys. He has the patients of a saint. The writer Mark Christmas gave a huge amount of time and hard labour in addition to his years-long dedication to this project and this poem which will be set at the entrance to the woodland walk:
Catching a Moment
Within these woods
there is a breath to be found
to ease new life into sight and sound
transforming our world and how we see
each branch, each twig, each living tree
so when the hurt inside we feel
creates distraction with no appeal
take a walk on this path to find this rhyme
you will no longer be ‘Marking Time.’
Mark Christmas, 2015.
Dedicated to those who understand.
Because vehicles could not pull up to the site, the budget was tight (having been well squeezed by this point as is my habit!) and we couldn’t be too sure who would be able to join us we used a slightly different installation method than in previous sculptures.
We fixed the triangle of heavy railway sleepers securely, dug down 20 cms and then packed in hollow breeze blocks.
The first sections were put in place using the paper template of the mosaic and corner tiles, steel rebars hammered down through the sections and well into the ground and then post-crete was poured into all available gaps and half way up inside the first 3 sculpture sections.
Gareth Ellis and Mark Christmas. Marking Time, Bronllys Hospital, Powys.
The second sections were braced in place using blocks/ wood/ prayers, rebars set, post-crete poured.
Mark Christmas working on the Marking Time Sculpture, Bronllys Hospital, Powys.
The mosaic was built in the studio in 3 sections to aid handling and set securely in place with concrete going right down into the breeze block hollows. The mosaic tiles and the triangle corner-tiles were beautifully made by pupils in Ross Bennett’s Art Department at Llandrindod High School.
Marking Time, Bronllys Hospital, Powys.
Me adding the finishing touches to the mosaic, Marking Time, Bronllys Hospital, Powys.
Mark Christmas brought in poet Emma nan Woerkom to take some lovely photos and create this beautiful poem that has been cut in brass for the site.
Marking Time, Bronllys Hospital, Powys.
All the visible cement (pointing etc) was done with a white cement/gold sand mix that matches the fired colour of the Scarva ES50 clay perfectly. On the floor we topped it with light brown flint chippings and extra, handmade blue mosaic tiles and glass to soften the edge of the mosaic.
Marking Time, Bronllys Hospital, Powys.
Finishing touches on the sculpture were done with Milliput and the golden cement.
Marking Time, Bronllys Hospital, Powys.
Mick Farell has been a key part of this project and he was wonderfully supportive during the installation. His enchanting poem, written especially for the sculpture completes the triangle.
We are the child of nevermind
Who, finding dreams lost, unfind
Who, wandering, walking paths unknown
to find a woodland overgrown
And seeing in that woodland Glen
The happy minds of nevermen
Who elfin laughter laughly speak
Of how we humans keenly seek
Some new haven overhewn
And child stars of the moon
Mick Farrell, 2016.
The poem tiles were made by the same fabulous pupils at Mount Street Junior School that developed the theme with me last year ( see Part 1)They are fixed to the sleepers with tile adhesive and screws.
We have spent a great deal of time on this one and it has been worth it. The Team have been a joy to work with and the whole woodland site looks really beautiful. Gareth Ellis and Mick Farrell will put in the benches and place and secure some tree-trunk logs. This is going to be such a calming, peaceful place for people involved with the Hospital to rest and revive.
The cut sections had a slow dry for a month and the last 6 weeks in a tent with the dehumidifier. Water is still collecting!! Soon I’m going to have to start the firing. But if the sections are still damp they will explode into a trillion smithereens….
The letter tiles look great.
The structure of the upper section of the sculpture is nearly complete and the art-work is roughed in. Inside a network of supports are in place to hold the walls now at this soft stage, when it is firm and cut into sections, when it is dry and being loaded into the kiln and during the firings when the whole thing will shrink a small amount. Holes are cut through the supports to accommodate the iron rebars that will re-enforce the concrete and secure the sections together. Other holes are placed around the sculpture so we can feed in concrete. Joins, etc will be pointed in the golden cement that will comprise most of the surface of the lower section where more pupil’s tiles will be set in to the breeze-block/cement form.
Pennard Primary School, yr 5 pupil’s panels set in the sculpture’s structure and the scale model. They have had 2 rounds of touching up and the final 2 (or more) will be done once the form’s structure is completed to ensure that the panels are part of the flow of the sculpture and don’t just look stuck on. The pupils art-work on their panels is so good it didn’t need more than strengthening the joins and repairing damage done during the inset process. It is the areas around the panels that will need careful work.
Pennard Primary School, yr 5 pupil’s panels set in the sculpture’s structure.
Pennard Primary School, yr 5 pupil’s panels set in the sculpture’s structure.
Pennard Primary School, yr 5 pupil’s panels set in the sculpture’s structure.
Pennard Primary School, yr 5 pupil’s panels set in the sculpture’s structure.
Pennard Primary School, yr 5 pupil’s panels set in the sculpture’s structure.
Pennard Primary School, yr 5 pupil’s panels set in the sculpture’s structure.
Pennard Primary School, yr 5 pupil’s panels set in the sculpture’s structure.
Rebecca Buck 